The city of San Francisco threatened to ban government agencies from purchasing new Apple products in a bid to force Apple back into the program.

Earlier this week, Apple maintained it would remain out of EPEAT but said its products were "superior in other important environmental areas".

Bob Mansfield, Apple's senior vice president of hardware engineering, posted an open letter to Apple customers describing the decision as "a mistake" and announcing Apple's return to the program:

"We've recently heard from many loyal Apple customers who were disappointed to learn that we had removed our products from the EPEAT rating system. I recognize that this was a mistake. Starting today, all eligible Apple products are back on EPEAT.

"It's important to know that our commitment to protecting the environment has never changed, and today it is as strong as ever. Apple makes the most environmentally responsible products in our industry. In fact, our engineering teams have worked incredibly hard over the years to make our products even more environmentally friendly, and much of our progress has come in areas not yet measured by EPEAT."

Mansfield added that Apple's relationship with EPEAT "has become stronger as a result of this experience" and that the two parties would work together to advance the IEEE 1680.1 standard, which specifies environmental handling attributes for PCs and displays.